Righteousness - Declaring or Making?

In my recent attempts to discover orthodoxy concerning ‚Äújustification‚Äù and salvation, I have run across an interesting disconnect. Ultimately it all boils down to the meaning of "to justify" (Dikaioo in Greek). It should come as no surprise that there is disagreement on its meaning. Reformed thinkers have long held that it means "to declare righteous."

L. Berkhof in his Systematic Theology said, "The verb means in general 'to declare a person to be just‚Ä¶it is to declare forensically that the demands of the law‚Ä¶are fully satisfied with regard to a person‚Ä¶to justify‚Ä¶is to effect an objective relation, the state of righteousness by a judicial sentence. This can be done‚Ä¶by imputing to a person the righteousness of another, that is, by accounting him righteous though he is inwardly unrighteous." This understanding as stated by Berkhof is a commonly held position by many after the Reformation. The ancient interpretation and understanding of "to justify" is quite different, however. Rather than a simple declaration of righteousness, justification meant "to make righteous." While it is true that God is a righteous and holy judge who demands justice for sin, the Scriptures seem more focused on God‚Äôs role as a loving Father who desires to make us His children.

To understand this, one must go back to the beginning. The Trinity was and is a perfect divine family even before anything else existed. When God created mankind, he created them male and female (in His image and nature). He instructed them to become one flesh - to be fruitful and multiply. Their union as man and wife in the marriage covenant drew them into God's nature even further as they took part in creation (creatio continua). Two came together as one within a covenantal union and a third proceeded from that union. The resulting family reflects - in human terms - the image of God. This first family was bound by a covenant which established their familial bonds.

After the fall, God reached out to humanity so as to redeem them to Himself - to reclaim them as His children. Throughout history God has established covenants to restore fallen humanity. Covenants have two components - Word and Sign. The word of the covenant contains the expectations and blessings for compliance and the curses for not fulfilling the expectations of the covenant. "Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people." This covenantal language dominates salvation history. We will look at the sign later.

In order to understand the place of forensics within covenants, we must first understand the purpose of God‚Äôs covenants. God wanted a restored family. Without this at the core of our thinking we can not proceed. With God as Father (first and foremost) in our minds, now we move to His role as holy Judge. Someone must objectively administer the covenant. The only one qualified to do this is God, Himself. God is the greater of the parties in the covenants He institutes with fallen humanity. Therefore, He is the only viable Judge. There is none greater than God. His role as judge is secondary and subservient, however, to His role as Father.

Jesus ushers in the New Covenant with His sacrificial death and resurrection. Jesus said to His disciples, ‚ÄúThis is the New Covenant in my blood.‚Äù This New Covenant retired the Mosaic covenant and restored the Abrahamic Covenant and fulfilled the Davidic Covenant. God‚Äôs covenant with Abraham was ALL ABOUT FAMILY. The New covenant is also ALL ABOUT FAMILY. The Davidic Covenant found its vibrancy in identifying with royal lineage. David‚Äôs royal family blood line was at the center. In the New Covenant, this is also the case as we become joint heirs with the King of kings.

Forensic justification which declares us righteous but leaves us fundamentally in a state of sin, does not coincide with adoption into God‚Äôs family and nature. Forensics, in this instance, must be seen in light of God‚Äôs designs to make us His sons and daughters. To be grafted into God‚Äôs family means that His lifeblood flows into us. No graft can take without receiving life from the source. Just taping a branch onto a vine does not make it alive!

When God declares something to be ‚Äì it IS SO. God said, ‚ÄúLet there be light,‚Äù and there was light. Jesus said, ‚ÄúLazarus, come forth,‚Äù and Lazarus came forth. Jesus did not say in an ambiguous way, ‚ÄúCome forth,‚Äù because all of the dead would have arisen. God‚Äôs Word enacts what it declares. When God declares us righteous ‚Äì it IS SO. We are made righteous.

Second, justification and regeneration are closely tied to Baptism. This is because the New Covenant, has a Word and a Sign or Signs. Baptism is a sign of the New Covenant (along with the Eucharist). Consider the following passages:

‚ÄúBut when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life‚Äù (Titus 3:4-7). As seen here, water and the spirit are connected with Baptism. This juxtaposition is also found in other Scriptural scenes, like: the creation account in Genesis with the spirit hovering over the waters, the dove coming back to Noah as they were saved from the flood waters, the cloud protecting the Israelites as they passed through the waters of the Red Sea, as Jesus was in the waters of the Jordan ‚Äì the Spirit descended like a dove, and as Jesus said to Nicodemus, ‚ÄúYou must be born of water and the Spirit.‚Äù Again, we see these two concepts linked in Paul‚Äôs discussion of regeneration here in Titus 3.

Romans 5 and 6 are even stronger connections. Chapter 5:18 and following says, ‚ÄúSo then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man‚Äôs disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.‚Äù

How are we made righteous? Look at Romans chapter 6:1-14. ‚ÄúWhat shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin‚Äî because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.‚Äù

Romans 5 declares that we are all under the curse of Adam. Jesus, in the New Covenant, reverses the curse. How do we come into the New Covenant? Romans 6 contains the answer. When we are Baptized into Christ, the old man is crucified and we are united with Jesus in His death. Original sin (Adam‚Äôs curse ‚Äì the old man) is washed away. Further, we are now ‚Äúunder grace‚Äù (v. 14). We are restored to favor with God. The old Gospel hymn says it better than I could, ‚ÄúMy sins were washed away and my night was turned to day.‚Äù

As Jesus said to Nicodemus, ‚Äú‚Ä¶unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.‚Äù Later he says, ‚Äú‚Ä¶unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

As outlined in the Scriptures above, Baptism is connected to justification for it is the ‚Äúwashing of regeneration.‚Äù 1 Peter 3:20-21 says after discussing Noah and the eight saved ‚Äúthrough the water,‚Äù that the water in that narrative is a type of baptismal water. ‚ÄúGod waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also‚Ä¶‚Äù

To conclude, God is an eternal Father who wants to be reconciled with fallen humanity. Jesus comes as the representative head to take mankind‚Äôs place in bearing the curse for Adam‚Äôs transgression. Justificaiton is reserved for those who come into Christ (baptism is the initiation rite into Christ). God adopts us as His children and we are united with the Lord.

Paul said, in 1 Corinthians 6:17, ‚ÄúBut anyone united to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.‚Äù That sounds like more than an external declaration from a judge and much more like the blessing of being adopted into the covenant family. What do you think?

About The Author

My calling over the last 30 years has been that of pastoral musician. Over the past few years this calling has been refined and refocused to that of ministering through all aspects of worship and discipleship. More specifically, my gifts and calling are in communicating the Word of God to the family of God. Preaching, teaching and writing are great passions for me. My giftedness for ministry is expressed best through preaching, leading worship, teaching discipleship classes and Bible studies, and in sharing life with my family in the faith. Articulated below are the principles that guide my ministry.

Worship is the eternal vocation of all who follow Christ and is the primary purpose of the Church. We also have earthly tasks to accomplish ‚Äúwhile it is day‚Äù, including: evangelism, discipleship, ministry and fellowship. As a pastor, I have responsibilities to equip the church in all of these important areas. Six concepts are most important in fulfilling these God-given imperatives.

First, I believe in the Authority of the Bible. God‚Äôs written Word is a divinely inspired treasury of truth that informs us about the covenant relationship offered to us by God, through Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. God‚Äôs Word is an unfolding series of interrelated covenants, culminating in the saving work of Jesus and the New Covenant. We are called into this story of salvation history and the covenant relationship it reveals.

Second, I believe in the Church as the Continuation of the Gospel Message. We must practice and proclaim the truth of the Gospel. As believers in Christ, we are called to ‚Äútake up our cross daily and follow (Him).‚ÄùThe Church is God‚Äôs chosen vehicle to extend His gracious provision throughout the centuries. Through our worship, and our mission efforts (evangelism and discipleship), the Gospel is perpetuated from one generation to the next.

Third, I believe in the importance of the Church‚Äôs Theological Reflection on the Gospel. Paul called the Church, ‚Äúthe pillar and foundation of truth(1 Timothy 3:15).‚Äù God‚Äôs Truth must be preserved, and the Church is God‚Äôs safeguard against erosion and reinterpretation of eternal truths. In order to remain firmly established, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Church‚Äôs consensus, and mutual accountability must be embraced.

Fourth, I believe that the Church‚Äôs worship must tell and enact the Gospel. It is through worship that we retell and re-present what the Lord Jesus has done for us through His death, burial, resurrection and ascension. The two ‚Äúordinances‚Äù of the church demonstrate this for us. In baptism, we enact what Jesus did in the waters of the Jordan, on the cross of Calvary and the empty tomb. Death and resurrection are vividly enacted in this God-given rite of passage as the candidate is ‚Äúburied with Christ,‚Äùand ‚Äúraised with Christ‚Äùto walk in newness of life. Similarly, the Apostle Paul said of the Lord‚Äôs Supper, ‚ÄúWhen you do this you proclaim the Lord‚Äôs death until He comes.‚ÄùPaul also said that the bread we break and the cup for which we give thanks are a ‚Äúparticipation‚Äùin the body and blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16). Clearly, our worship should draw us into the amazing story of salvation history.

Fifth, I believe that discipleship or spiritual formation in the Church leads to the embodiment of the Gospel. When Jesus called the Disciples, He said, ‚ÄúFollow me.‚Äù As we follow we are to conform more and more to the image of Christ. Jesus does not call us to self-fulfillment. He calls us to deny ourselves, to die to ourselves, to take up our crosses daily and follow Him. In order to do this, we must grow toward maturity in our faith. An intentional process of discipleship is vital if we are to fulfill the expectations of the Lord‚Ä¶ ‚ÄúAs you go, make disciples...‚Äù

Sixth, I believe that the Church is called to be the earthly embodiment of Christ in the world. We must be ‚Äúmissional‚Äù and speak the truth prophetically. We must be counter-cultural and stand against evil. Our profession of faith must match our daily lives so that the world will see that we are a ‚Äúpeculiar people,‚Äùliving out our sacred commitments.

Worship is at the heart of all we do as followers of Christ. I ascribe to the concept that ‚Äúthe worship of the people shapes their faith.‚ÄùHow we worship is vital. My ability as a communicator, my experience as a pastoral musician and my studies in the Scriptural foundations for worship have equipped me to lead Anchor as a community committed to Scripturally defined worship. My calling compels me to share the eternal truths that transform us into the image of Christ.